Edge sewing machines



Aug. 30, 1955 H, MULLER ET AL 2,716,387

' EDGE SEWING'MACHINES Filed 00t- 27, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet l Aug. 30, 1955 H, MULLER ET AL 2,716,387

EDGE SEWING MACHINES Filed OCG, 27, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 EDGE SEWING MACHINES Heinrich MullerjandQKarl Schwalbach,.Frankfurt am Main, Germany, assignors to Maschinenfabrik Moenus A. G., Frankfurt. am Main,- Germany, a firm Application October. 27, 1953,.Serial No. 388,556

Claims priority, application Germany November 7, 1952 10 Claims. -(Cl. 112-62) This inventionl relates to edgesewing machines of the kind which is used'` for the sewing or closing of trunks, boxes, cases and. tlieflike` along their. edges and in which the work piece is guided'over a horn in the machine past the sewing instrumentalities. Inithe present type of the machines of this kind'the: length of the horn has to be chosen to approximate thesize of thenboxes to besewn, so that for operating'xon boxes of various, sizes several machines are required.` The length of the horn depended on the measurement of the boxes insofar, as with such sizes which did not correspond to the length of thehorn, the ends or the sides ofthe boxes would strike against the horn or its support so that larger boxes could not be sewn. By holding: the boxes in an inclined position this inconvenience couldlberalleviated but not removed.

The aforesaid disadvantage` is largely due to the fact that in the machines as at present in use the horn is fixed in position and cannot, therefore, be turned away from the obstructing partsof thev boxes to bexsewn.

It is, therefore, the main object ofthe invention to provide-an edge sewingmachineof the aforesaid type in i which the saidfdisadvantages are absent and in which boxes and cases of`anycommercial sizes canv be accommodated and sewn along the fullllength `of rall their edges on one and the same machine.-

Another object. of the inventionis the. provision of an edge sewing or bag-closing machine ofthe `aforesaid type in which the hornisrevoluble so that it may be turned during the sewing operations outl of-.thenway of any obstructions which may be caused by partsV of the'workpiece. under operation.

Turnable hornsin sewingmachines, especially shoe sewing machines, are known. Inthese machines, however,. thefhorn merely serves for supporting a shoe inwardly in order toenable a thread. being `placed around the barb of the sewingneedleby'means ofv a. rotary thread guide, or whirlin the' tip of the horn, whereas the sewing instrumentalities inthesemachinesare positioned outside thef'horn'tip and the needle penetratesthe shoe sole from above; In edge'sewing machines, in whichboxes are fed over the horn, the turning of'` the; latterhas'not been possible ybecausein thesev machines Vthe sewing instrurnentalities, for example the sewing needle, the by-needle (which serves for coveringdup the barb of the sewing Vneedle duringfits return stroke),.andY th'eneedle' guide are United States PatentjO 2,716,387 Ptfttented 3.0, 1955 ICC accompanying drawings, in which ai prefeIredLembOdiment of the inventionl is illustrated-:by way-ofexamplm and in which: j

Fig. l is a longitudinal section through the-horn of` an edge sewing machineiin accordancew-ith 'theinventiom Figs; 2 to` 5 diagrammaticallyf,illustrate-diiferentpositions ofthe horn andfhornfgearduringfthe turningthereof. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectionathroughgthe -top of Vthe horn on an enlargedscale., t' i The machineillustrated intel-iig:A 1 is of the type having a straight hooked needle and a straight-feedgawl;Infthe standard 1 of this vmachineeisga` bracket 2`in which the vertical bearing post 3 of the. horn 4 is adaptedfto turnfin ball bearings. The sewing instrumentalities, including the vstraight needle 5, 'the byfneedle andf-theneedle-guid'e, of which latter two-onlythe tubular carriers and 7far'e visible in the section, andthe work supporter horncap v8 with its sewing slot 9; are .loosely journaled inqthe. head portion 10'of the hor-n with their axes positionedvcoaxially with that of the turning post. For the purpose of the invention it is necessary that these vertically reciprocating parts should retain their ,positions as shown-in the ligure throughout the entire operation of themachi'nefand-in any angular position into whichthe horn may havebeen turned. To. achieve `thispur-pose. the following; arrangement has beenprovidednv Carriedy inv the-uprightT branch ofy the hornf whichfconstitutes 'a hollow vertical arm',.isarverticalshaft 15 which penetrates with its endsV through the top Yand`V bottomplates oi the horn. Fixed to theupper endfof thesaid shaft is a sprocket orchain wheel k16,while'another and Apreferably, but not necessarily; larger `chainfwheel i 1.7 isfixed to the lower end ofi-thesaidlshaft.v Theupperlchainwheel 16 is connected by mean'sof-a' chain-18lftoachain wheel or sprocket 19vwhichAforms-.part off a sleeve'20 towhich the horn cap 8fis yfxedasby'screwing.` A pin 21 which projects inwardlyfrom the' aforesaid sleevey 20 extends into a slot 22 off'theneedle bar 23--an'dprevents` the turning of the sewing tools iniamanner Still -t'o lbe described. The lower chain Vwheel .1-7 isrin'conne'ction', bymeansof the chain 24, withwtherchainffwheel f25bwhichiis screwedfto the-machine frame and-thereby ijs preventedzfrom rotating. If now, duringtheioperationoffthemachine, the horn 4 is turned aboutits-.bearingpost 3, thef'vertical shaft 15 is moved withthe-hornsoas to describe'a circle-withl the bearing` ypost 3 as acentre. Since, however, inv the-'further progress of the sewingtoperationt) it is necessary that theshaft` 15 shouldmaintainits` position shownvin the drawing, its tendency to-lt-urn hast-to be. counteracted, which is done in thevfollowing' manners.

Since theV chin wheel-25z` does not-turn` because'of its being screwedftoth'e machineframeythel chain'24f`does not have to transmit any driving action. However?, owing to the change inzthe angular". positionof the -liner'intersecting the wheels425 and'v 17 during :the turning; of the horn, thelinksof thechain` rolloion`the`teethy of the wheel 25,wherebyfthe chain is causedfto move -gradually around. the saidy two wheels.- 'Ihis'movement-maytake place to the right or tothe'leftaccording tofthe 'turning direction of the horn, .'andit counteracts theitendency of both the gear wheel 1-7 and, therewith," ofthe verticalzshaft 15 to turn abouttheirvcommon axisr- Thus'theshaft 15, which is loosely-journaled in thevertical-horn arm, and the wheel 17;,remain`,in-.thepositionshownf in Fig. l during their wholetravellingfrnovementfaboutitheturning-.post 3, thatis-..to-,say, they Ewill always present the same side to the lattendant standing' infront of the machine.

Figs. 2 to 5 illustratetheprocedure during the turning of the horn to `the right. Theposition'in Fig. 2 of the horn 4 at the beginning 'oh theturningmovement-` about the post 3i corresponds .to'lthat shownfin VFig.g1; f The vertical shaft is loosely journaled in the horn 4, but its free rotation is prevented by the chain wheel 17 at its lower end being held immovably by the chain 24 and the stationary chain wheel 25. In order better to be able to understand the rolling-oli movement of the chain along the two chain wheels and 17, dashes l'to S have been drawn on both wheels which are intended to represent the teeth of the said wheels. The chain links starting from the point 1 of the wheel 25 have been designated A, B, C, D and those starting from the point 1 of the wheel 17 are denoted by a, b, c, d. It is to be understood, that both wheels must have the same ratio and that they are, therefore, of equal size and provided both with the same number of teeth.

In the position shown in Fig. 3 the horn 4 is assumed to have been turned through an angle of 135. The screwed down wheel 25 has, of course, stayed in its position which is borne out by the tooth No. 1 having remained in its top position as shown in the figure, but the vertical arm 4 has, by virtue of its movement, changed the position of the chain links. Link A is still on tooth 1, but the other links B, C, D, which were free in Fig. 2, have placed themselves along the right side of the wheel 25 and are now in engagement with the teeth 2, 3 and 4 of the same. Hereby the chain links a, b, c, d have been retarded in relation to the chain wheel 17, or in other words, during the turning of the horn about its post 3 the chain wheel 17 has moved backward on the chain links using the chain as a track, and thereby has taken the chain with it, without thereby altering its position. Also in this case point 1 of the chain wheel 17 has maintained its position at the top of the wheel. Only the link d is still on tooth 4, while the links c, b, a are already on the free part of the chain. There has been, strictly speaking, a release of the links a, b and c from the teeth 1, 2 and 3 in a direction opposite to the direction of turning.

On turning the horn through another 180 into the position shown in Fig. 4 the chain 24 has continued its travel and the chain wheel 17 is now reapproaching its starting position which it will have attained by moving through a last into the position of Fig. 5. The chain has travelled, in the example shown, by an amount of l2 links and since this travel, owing to the fixed position of the chain wheel 25, has been in the reverse direction to the turning of the horn, it has caused the shaft 15 during this turning movement through all angular positions of the horn to remain stationary relative to the remainder of the machine. This turning movement has been to the right; when turning the horn to the left, the chain will travel in the opposite direction.

The same procedure as the one just described takes place between the upper chain wheels 16, 19, and their connecting chain 18. Also in this case `the ratio of the wheels 16 and 19 will have to be as 1:1, while the ratio of the two pairs of wheels, viz:` 25, 17 and 16, 19 may be as desired.

During the turning of the horn under maintenance of the initial position of the shaft 15, the upper chain wheel 16 also maintains its initial position and it thus constitutes the fixed wheel in the sense of the aforedescribed chain wheel 25 of the lower set. Similar to the lower gear the links of the chain 18 of the upper gear move over the teeth of the Wheels 16 and 19 by the amount of a few links without thereby producing any driving action. This results in that the loosely turnable chain wheel 19 together with the horn cap 8 fastened thereto, is held in its initial position in spite of the turning of the horn and the chain travel. Thus, also in this case, the tendency of the chain wheel 19 and its connected parts to participate in the turning of the horn is being counteracted. Turning of the needle bar and its connected parts is prevented by the pin 21 taking into the slot 22 thereof, whereby it is to be remembered that the pin 21 is xed to the sleevelike extended hub of the wheel 19 and is held stationary together with the same. In this way and by the described means all the sewing instrumentalities in the horn and the horn cap 8 with its slot 9 maintain their initial positions as shown in Fig, l.

It is to be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to the aforedescribed means for maintaining the sewing instrumentalities and the horn cap in their initial positions, but that other means, such as intermediate gear wheels, toothed racks or the like may be provided in place of the chains 18 and 24. Instead of geared means other suitable connections, such as links and levers or the like may be arranged for the object of maintaining the initial positions of the aforesaid instrumentalities despite the turning of the horn for the purpose specified or for any other purpose, with the axes of the said instrumentalities remaining coaxial with the turning axis of the horn.

The up and down movement of the needle bar 23 and its associated instrumentalities also takes place without being impeded by the turning of the horn. For this purpose the following mechanism is provided: Y

A ball-ended tappet rod 30 is provided and is slidably arranged in the central bore of the bearing post 3 of the horn, of which rod the ball-shaped knuckle engages the one arm 31a of the two-arm lever 31. This lever is pivoted in the machine frame at 32, and its rearwardly extending arm 31 is connected to a similar double lever 33, 33a in the head of the horn by means of a connecting rod 34, which transmits the motion of the lever system just referred to to the upper lever system. The lever arm 33a serves for reciprocating the needle bar 23 by means of an interpositioned link 38. i

A similar system is provided to reciprocate the byneedle and the guide needle also in vertical direction. This movement is initiated by a tubular tappet rod 40 which encloses the tappet rod 30, over the lower double lever 39, 39a and the connecting rod 50 to the upper double lever 36, 36a, and from lthere over the link37 to the sleeve 35 on which the Dy-needle and the needleguide are arranged. The movement of these parts is derived from the driving mechanism of the machine (not shown) over a rod 41, the bell crank levers 42, 43 and the links 44, 45, of which the former acts on the tappet rod 30 and the latter on the tubular tappet 40. The reference numeral 46 denotes the feed awl of the machine which is arranged outside of the horn over the horn cap 8 and which effects the feed of the work piece through the slot 9 provided therein.

What we claim is:

l. In an edge sewing machine having a horn and vertically reciprocable sewing iustrumentalities including a straight needle operating through a slot in the top of the horn, a turning post for the horn coaxial with the axis of the straight sewing needle, a bearing in the machine frame for turnably supporting the said horn, and means intermediate the horn support and the sewing instrumentalities for oounteracting the turning tendency of said sewing instrumentalities relative to the remainder of the machine during the turning movement of the horn about the said turning post.

2. In an edge sewing machine having a horn and vertically reciprocable sewing instrumentalities including a straight needle operating through a slot in the top of the horn, a turning post for the horn coaxial with the axis of the straight sewing needle, a bearing in the machine frame for turnably supporting the said horn, and geared means including a gear wheel stationary on the machine frame intermediate the horn support and the sewing instrumentalities for counteracting the turning tendency of said sewing instrumentalities relative to the remainder of the machine during the turning movement of the horn about the said turning post.

3. In an edge sewing machine having a horn and vertically reciprocable sewing instrumentalities including a straight needle operating through a slot in the top of the horn, a turning post for the horn coaxial with the axis of the straight sewing needle, a bearing in the machine frame for turnably supporting the said horn, means intermediate the horn support and the said sewing instrumentalities for counterncting the turning tendency of said sewing instrumentalities relative to the remainder of the machine during the turning of the horn comprising a gear wheel stationary on the machine frame at the lower part of the horn and coaxial with the said turning post, a second gear wheel having a sleeve-like extended hub surrounding said sewing instrumentalities, a vertical shaft loosely journaled in the said horn at a distance from the said turning post, a third gear wheel ixed to the upper and a fourth gear wheel fixed to the lower end of the said vertical shaft, connecting means between the rst and fourth gear wheels at the lower part of the horn, and connecting means between the second and third gear wheels at the upper part of the horn.

4. In an edge sewing machine having a horn and vertically reciprocable sewing instrumentalities including a straight needle operating through a slot in the top of the horn, a turning post for the horn coaxial with the axis of the straight sewing needle, a bearing in the machine frame for turnably supporting the said horn, means intermediate the horn support and the said sewing instrumentalities for counteracting the turning tendency of the said sewing instrumentalities relative to the remainder of the machine during the turning of the horn comprising a chain wheel stationary on the machine frame at the lower part of the horn and coaxial with the said turning post, a second chain wheel having a sleeve-like extended hub surrounding said sewing instrumentalities, a vertical shaft loosely journaled in the said horn at a distance from the said turning post, a third chain wheel xed to the upper and a fourth chain wheel fixed at the lower end of the said vertical shaft, a chain connecting the rst and fourth chain-wheels at the lower part of the horn, and a second chain connecting the second and third chain wheels at the upper part of the horn.

5. In an edge sewing machine having a vertical horn, a slotted horn cap serving as a work guide, vertically reciprocating sewing instrumentalities including a straight needle operating through the slot in said horn cap, a needle bar having a vertical slot in said needle bar, a bottom plate and a top plate for the said horn, a turning post at one end of said bottom plate coaxial with the axis of the straight sewing needle, a hollow vertical arm oifset with respect to said turning post and connecting the said top and bottom plates, a vertical shaft loosely journaled in the said hollow arm and having chain wheels keyed to its upper and its lower ends, respectively, another chain Wheel xed to the machine frame and coaxially surrounding said turning post, a chain connecting said xed chain wheel with said chain wheel on the lower end of said vertical shaft, a further chain wheel having an extended hub fixed relatively to, and surrounding said sewing instrumentalities at the upper part of the horn, a pin in said extended hub extending into the longitudinal slot in the needle bar to prevent turning of the said sewing instrumentalities, and a second chain connecting said further chain wheel with said chain wheel at the upper end of said vertical shaft.

6. In an edge sewing machine having a vertical horn and vertically reciprocable sewing instrumentalities including a straightY needle in said horn, a slotted cap at the top of said horn, a longitudinally drilled turning post for the horn coaxial with the axis of said straight needle, a bearing in the machine frame for turnably supporting the said horn, a hollow vertical arm constituting the vertical member of the horn and arranged to swivel about said turning post, a vertical shaft loosely journaled in said hollow arm, a chain wheel keyed to the top of said vertical shaft, a second chain wheel keyed to the lower end of said shaft, a third chain wheel xed on the machine frame surrounding the said turning post, a fourth chain-wheel fixed relatively to said sewing instrumentalities, geared means connecting the chain wheels at the top and geared means connecting the chain wheels at the bottom of the horn, a solid and a hollow tappet vertically movable in the central drilled bore of said turning post, links in connection with the said sew ing instrumentalities, other links in connection with the said solid and hollow tappets, means for raising and lowering said links and, connecting rods in said hollow arm to connect said links on the tappets with the said links on the sewing instrumentalities.V

7. In an edge sewing machine, a vertical horn, a top and a bottom plate for said horn, a hollow vertical arm connecting said top and bottom plates at one end thereof, a turning post depending from the free end of the bottom plate, a central drilled bore in the said turning post, a vertical bearing in the machine frame for turnably supporting said turning post and horn, a lower chain wheel nonturnably txed to the machine frame surrounding the said turning post, sewing instrumentalities including a straight needle and needle bar in the free end of the top plate, coaxially located with the axis of the said turning post, an upper chain wheel encircling the said sewing instrumentalities and loosely journaled in the said top plate, gearing means intermediate the said non-turnable lower chain wheel and the upper chain wheel for preventing rotary movement of said sewing instrumentalities, longitudinally movable driving means for the sewing instrumen talities in the bore of said turning post, means to reciprocate said driving means, and means in the vertical arm of the horn for transmitting the movements of the said driving means to the sewing instrumentalities.

8. In an edge sewing machine, a vertical horn, a top and a bottom plate extending horizontally from said horn, sewing instrumentalities including a straight needle and needle bar vertically reciprocable at the free end of said top plate, a centrally bored turning post depending from the lower part of the horn at the free end of said bottom plate coaxially with said needle and needle bar, a vertical bearing in the machine frame for supporting said turning post, a fixed gear wheel surrounding said turning post, geared means between the said gear wheel and the sewing instrumentalities for preventing rotation of said instrumentalities relative to the remainder of the machine during the turning of the horn, a link and lever arrangement to reciprocate said sewing instrumentalities, a hollow tappet passing through the bore in said turning post, a solid tappet passing through said hollow tappet, means to reciprocate said tappets from the driving parts of the machine, and means within the hollow arm of the horn for transmitting the reciprocating movement from the said tappets to the said link and lever arrangement of said sewing instrumentalities.

9. An edge sewing machine as set forth in claim 5, in which the cooperative chain wheels at the top of the horn and the cooperative chain wheels at the bottom of the horn are all of the same ratio.

10. An edge sewing machine as set forth in claim 5, in which the cooperative set of chain wheels at the top of the horn and the cooperative set of chain wheels at the bottom of the horn is of the ratio 1:1 in each set, while the ratio of either set with respect to the other is different.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,283,437 Williams Oct. 29,'1918 FOREIGN PATENTS 494,603 Great Britain Oct. 28, 1938 

